NU.nl regularly provides you with an overview of the situation in Israel and the Palestinian territories. Today: In Qatar, according to sources, there is talk of releasing hostages held by Hamas. In addition, Israel is said to have agreed to a temporary cessation of fighting in the Gaza Strip.
Developments in Israel and the Palestinian territories follow each other in quick succession. So we regularly list the latest events. Subscribe to the “Gaza Conflict Update” tag to receive notification when we publish another overview.
Ontvang regelmatig een overzicht van de ontwikkelingen in Gaza en Israël
The White House said late in the afternoon that the cessation of fighting should allow residents to escape hostilities. About four hours will be freed each day.
Spokesman John Kirby said that Israel informed the Americans that the rest periods would begin on Thursday. He was there, according to the news agency Reuters At the beginning of the evening, there were no signs yet that the first break was imminent.
According to Kirby, rest periods will always be announced by the Israelis three hours in advance. The temporary interruption of Israeli operations currently applies to northern Gaza. President Joe Biden later said he would have liked longer pauses in the fighting.
“Tens of thousands of Gazans are on their way south.”
According to Kirby, pauses in fighting not only allow people to flee to safer areas, but also allow for the provision of humanitarian aid and possibly the release of hostages.
Israel emphasizes that the cessation of fighting should not be viewed as a ceasefire. It is for purely humanitarian purposes, according to a statement by the Israeli army.
Benjamin Netanyahu’s office also published a letter Thursday afternoon, but it did not explicitly mention stopping the daily fighting. Instead, she said, there are in fact daily breaks to allow Gazans to move south.
Netanyahu’s office wrote that by Wednesday, 50,000 people are expected to leave. The Israeli army speaks of “tens of thousands of Gazans” who are still on their way to the southern Gaza Strip.
Gaza Strip movement shows two Israeli hostages
Far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir described the cessation of fighting as a “huge mistake” because the cessation periods are not linked to the release of hostages.
It is not known whether agreements have already been reached with Hamas regarding the release of the hostages. On Thursday evening, a Hamas spokesman said that there were contacts with Israel and that negotiations were ongoing. He did not say what else was discussed.
Another extremist movement in the Gaza Strip, Saraya al-Quds, distributed video footage of what it claimed were two Israeli hostages being held by the group. The armed wing of the Islamic Jihad movement in Palestine announced that it would release the duo for humanitarian reasons if certain conditions are met.
It is about an elderly woman and a teenager. also Watchman And Al Jazeera Report on the declaration of Islamic Jihad. Israel responded to the photos in writing Al Jazeera And Reuters. An army spokesman spoke of “important images” but also spoke of “psychological warfare.”
0:46People fleeing Gaza wave the white flag
A possible new attempt to release the hostages is being prepared
Reuters He further writes that there was also discussion in Qatar on Thursday about an attempt to release the hostages. The US intelligence service CIA, its Israeli counterpart Mossad, and Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, among others, are said to have discussed the preconditions for such an attempt.
According to media in the region, Israel wants to release at least thirty hostages. Hamas will also demand the release of women and children detained by Israel.
Outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte wants to quickly sit down with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to discuss the situation in the region. Rutte hopes that Abbas will come to The Hague soon. In recent days, the Prime Minister spoke with Netanyahu and the Emir of Qatar.
Het conflict uitgelegd
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